All Booked Up

READ THIS IF:

– Growing up w/90’s fantasy books, you developed an unhealthy desire to adopt a giant monster as a pet.
– You read and loved The Prison Healer.

MY THOUGHTS:

The Prison Healer surprised me and quickly became one of my favorite YA fantasy books.

That is why it hurts me to admit that this sequel left much to be desired.

Middle books in a trilogy always feel like the “redheaded stepchild” of the series (not to offend any red-headed stepchildren out there), and unfortunately, The Gilded Cage was not the exception.

A few points of contention:
(1) 300 pgs were spent laying the foundation, whereas the first novel more courageously just jumped headfirst into the plot. This is the annoying part of “middle books” I dread the most, and while I expected it at some point, I don’t have to like it.
(2) I wanted to straight up throat-punch Kiva for most of the book. I know her character is only 17 and her frontal lobe isn’t fully developed, but MAKE BETTER CHOICES.

A few points of praise:
(1) Unlike the first book, I saw some of the twists coming… but the last 100 pages are full of enough unexpected soul-punching that it almost made up for it. Is “soul-punching” too strong of a descriptor? Like, my soul isn’t crushed, but it’s gonna be sore in the morning. I just wish I didn’t have to muscle through 300 pgs to get there.
(2) Holy mackerel, I love a good cliffhanger. I’m starting to realize it’s a special skill of Noni’s. She injects more storytelling into 3 short sentences than most people cram into an entire novel. I adore her style and I’m excited to see what she writes after this series is over.

With that in mind, I’d like to dedicate these 3⭐️’s to Caldon, Torell, and Mr. Chomps. *queue salute into the horizon*

CASTING

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